The musketeers
by Marjorie Nescio
Summary: Joe to the rescue! After the innocent Queen is sentenced guilty for killing her husband, she disappears. It's up to her loyal loving bodyguard to find her and the real murderer as well... ### updated ###
1. Introduction

~Introduction~

Hello dear reader,

Before I start with the story, please bear with me for a moment so I can explain what _The musketeers_ is about and why I wrote it.

In my story _International waters _the innocent Queen was about to be executed for killing her husband when her friend Lord Andre Sadique rescued her. He was a villain and my pre-readers Monique and Corrina informed me that they expected Joe to save the Queen from Andre's hands. They also - and repeatedly - told me that they wanted justice to gain the victory. As it happened that was not what I had in mind (for I like drama and I grew a bit fond of Andre Sadique) but I promised them to write an alternate version of the story; one in which Joe would be a hero.

An alternate version both requires and allows for changes in the story line. I've given myself the liberty to use original characters that didn't exist in _International waters_. It concerns the Queen of the Netherlands (in a small yet vital part) and Colonel Frerer. Both of them made their appearance in several of my stories. Lord Sadique still has a major part and he is far less gentlemanlike and not quite the perfectionist he was in _International waters_.

The theme being ´Joe to the rescue!´ _The musketeers_ is all about action. The good thing about that is that logic can be forgotten – a little bit. If you ever saw an action film you'll know what I mean. While re-reading my first writings for _The musketeers_ I had to remind myself that in an action story the hero should take first place when it comes to clever ideas and brave deeds and though I didn't like it I re-wrote the Colonel into a side-kick. Rules must be obeyed…

The story is situated after the first Princess Diaries film and contains five more chapters. Each chapter covers a day and describes the adventures of several characters.

So far for the introduction. I hope you will read the story and enjoy it.


	2. Day 1

**### Day 1 ###**

**A news stand in Pyrus, Genovia**

From the roof of a news stand a blue, white and green flag hangs down. A noisily crowd gathers in front of the kiosk. The shop owner is busy selling evening papers that only just arrived and he unwillingly angers some people who claim to have been next in line. Behind the shop owner weekly magazines are displayed. They all show the same fair lady on the cover and the headlines are alike too: _Queen on trial for killing King _or_ King poisoned: Queen major suspect._

The anxious buyers start reading their papers even as they walk away. All front pages show a picture of the handcuffed Queen.

The Genovian Daily: QUEEN FUGUTIVE!

The Genovian Times: GUILTY QUEEN ESCAPED EXECUTION

The Pyran Courier: POLICE AFTER QUEEN CLARISSE

**A trench in the Spanish country side, near the Spanish Genovian border**

In the light of the full moon a man lies half hidden under a bush in a trench. It looks like someone dropped him and then gave him a push so he'd roll down. The man is in his sixties, balding and unconscious. Judging from his expression he's having a nightmare.

It starts to drizzle.

´No, don't shoot her! Clarisse!´

The man wakes up in a jolt and instantly reaches into his left boot to take out a knife with a dark blade. He looks around him, clearly expecting danger. The man, after concluding that he is safe, studies his watch (which reads 19:46). He then checks what items he has on him. His holster is empty and so is the pocket where his cell phone would be. He curses. However, in hidden pockets he finds a small torch, a compass and several other items, among which a bar of chocolate. He devours the chocolate and rises. The wrap of his candy bar is blown away by the wind and he walks toward it to stuff it in his pocket. His boots leave prints in the mud.

**A military camp north of Quebec, Canada**

The Maple Leaf waves in a breeze. From a forest a division of recruits approaches the camp. They are all men and they wear the blue, white and green flag of Genovia on their left sleeves. When the men, who are visibly tired and cold, see the barracks they brighten up. The outfit of their commanding officer (a slim brunette in her thirties whose name tag reads FRERER) is as dirty as that of her men but she looks like she can march along for hours. Once in the camp she orders them to line up.

´Men,´ she tells them, ´I will keep this short. For the past three weeks each and every one of you proved that he can survive in the wilderness. Moreover you worked together as a team, as befits navy seals.´

The men stamp but the moment their commander raises her eyebrows, they stop.

´Clean up and who knows: we might celebrate with a nice cup of tea.´

The men grin.

´Dismissed.´

As the men cheer and pat each other's shoulders, the Colonel is approached by a Canadian Captain. They exchange salutes.

´Colonel, we didn't realise about your function in your Queen's Military Hou-´

´What happened?´ the officer interrupts.

´Queen Clarisse was accused of killing your King.´

The Genovians fall silent. Then a couple of them start to laugh.

The Colonel silences them with a look.

´Could you brief me?´ she asks the Captain. The man quickly follows her toward the officers' barrack.

**A ditch in the Spanish country side, near the Spanish Genovian border**

There's a rat sitting on the bank of a small moon-lit ditch. The water in it barely moves and the rat takes his time to clean his whiskers, undisturbed by the distant sound of sirens. Suddenly the animal looks up and dives into the water. A few seconds later on a balding man -the one we saw in the trench- wades past the spot where the rat sat. His muscled upper body is naked and so might his legs be. His tanned skin is covered with mud for camouflage. He holds a bundle above his head.

The man continues to follow the small stream. He doesn't look backwards and grimly wades along. When he hears a helicopter he seeks shelter under the overhanging branches of a bush. Sometime later on excited barking is heard, as well as voices. The sounds don't come closer.

**An officers' barrack in a military camp north of Quebec, Canada**

Colonel Frerer and the Canadian Captain are watching CNN. There's an item about an explosion in a chemical fabric in China going on. The Captain tells the Colonel: ´A letter that was supposedly written by your late King was published in a paper. It said that he feared for his life. His remains were investigated and it turned out that he was poisoned. Because he had been unfaithful to your Queen and because she was said to be angry at the way he had acted toward their son, the one who became a priest, and because people believed that she wanted the throne for herself, she was arrested.´

The Colonel refrains from commenting for a picture of the fair Queen of Genovia appears on the TV screen. A CNN host comments:

_´Back to Genovia now. This monarchy between Spain and France is shaken to its core. Around noon CET Queen Clarisse was sentenced to be guilty of King Rupert's murder and Parliament decided that she was to be executed.´_

The Canadian officer glances from the TV to the Colonel who watches the news with clenched jaws.

_´Several European leaders responded to the outcome of the trial. The Dutch Queen was the first to do so by addressing the European Parliament in Brussels.´_

On the TV screen a charismatic lady in her sixties is seen and heard:

_´Forty minutes ago the Genovian Parliament decided to execute Queen Clarisse.´_

_The Queen of the Netherlands has to raise her voice to overcome the noise her remark causes._

_´I need not tell you that death penalty is forbidden in the European Union.´_

_The camera shows a man, identified by subtitles as MP D'Aulnoy from Genovia: ´Ma'am, the circumstances are exceptional! She killed our King!´ _

_Queen Beatrix ignores him. ´Death penalty is forbidden ladies and gentlemen! Act upon it.´_

_´She killed him!´ the Genovian representative yells: ´The judges said so! She killed our King!´_

_The Queen, sweeping her gaze over her audience, continues: ´Members of Parliament, Justice didn't wear a blindfold in Genovia. Justice used a manipulated balance in Genovia. Justice wants to execute an inno-´_

_The Genovian MP is fuming by now and interrupts: ´You take that back ma'am! You're just saying that because that murderess is your friend!´_

_The TV again shows the journalist in the studio who informs the viewers that they will go live to Genovia._

_´Thank you Tom,´ a journalist on location replies. She has to speak loudly for behind her people are demonstrating and crying: ´Justice!´ and ´Catch her! Catch her!´_

_´Behind me you see and hear Genovians on the Main Square in Pyrus, the capital of Genovia.´_

_´They sound furious Neha.´_

_´They are Tom. Parliament acted swiftly after deciding that the Queen should be executed and at about the time Queen Beatrix addressed the European Parliament Queen Clarisse had already been brought onto the court yard of the House of Justice where she was to be executed, when she was taken inside again. Witnesses state that the Archbishop of Pyrus entered the building too, and they reasoned that Her Majesty wanted to confess. However, the Archbishop was found unconscious soon afterwards and the Queen was gone. It is believed that her Head of Security, Joe Romero -´_

Mr Romero's picture appears in the top right corner of the TV screen. The man we last saw wading through a ditch now has a name.

_´- helped her escape. The Genovians on this square feel that the search for the Queen is just for show and they demand the Prime Minister, who acted as Her Majesty's legal councillor during the trial, to prove that everything is being done to capture her. They already demand his resignation should he fail to do so. Experts hope the Prime Minister can stand the pressure. This was Neha Thoppil for CNN.´_

The TV turns black and the Colonel places a remote control on a nearby table. ´Could you gather as much information about this subject as possible Captain? I'll have a shower and I will be back in fifteen minutes.´

´Yes sir!´

´And could you find out the fastest connection to Pyrus please,´ the Colonel adds while walking away.

**Warehouse Froment in Antiem, Genovia**

A van with the words _Marcel Froment harbour supplies and shipbroker_ written on its sides enters a warehouse. Two men in their late twenties get out. They look tough, just as the older man who awaits them and who closes and locks the sliding door through which the van entered. One of the young men knocks on a wall. There's a knock in reply. He opens a hidden door revealing a closet size space and takes out the floor-board.

´Everything was ready for you to bring along?´ the older man asks the second man who has striking auburn hair.

´Yep. Who'd have thought eh Marcel?´

´What?´

´About Queen Clarisse?´

´She's gone down in my esteem. Getting caught like that…´

Daniel grins. Seeing his colleague descending on a ladder in the closet he opens the van's back doors. Daniel and Froment pick up small parcels which according to their labels contain food. They drop them into the closet where they are caught. After walking to and fro a few times all similar parcels are dispatched off. Froment then closes the secret door and opens a second sliding door. It reveals an indoor pier and a provisioning boat with a green white chequered band on the barrel.

The boxes left in the van carry name tags like _Rosamund_, _Master of the Ocean, Triple V _and _Poseidon. _Daniel stores the boxes in the boat while Froment ticks off the merchandize on a list.

´Oh great,´ Froment comments when the van proves to contain a large wooden case with straw sticking out between its boards. It has _fragile_ and _this side up _written all over it. ´Well, it's my living right?´

Daniel laughs along with him. Froment helps his employee to carefully carry the case to the boat.

**Outside hotel De Mouy in Pyrus**

In front of the hotel's entrance a plump blonde reporter and her cameraman are surrounded by people who heatedly argue the trial and the Queen's escape. One person cries out that the Queen wouldn't hurt a soul, but she is overruled by the others. When the reporter sees two gentlemen step out of a limousine she walks toward them. The tallest of the men, who is handsome in an unconventional way, is not pleased with the attention.

´Sir, you're a friend of the royal family,´ the reporter asks him. Her audience shuts up. ´How do you feel knowing that the King was killed by the Queen? What are your views on her escape?´

The man holds up a hand, which spots an impressive seal-ring. ´No comment,´ he remarks and he enters the hotel.

The other gentleman, who is big and looks pale due to his black beard, is only too keen to be interviewed.

´Well Miss Eco, I'm afraid that Lord Sadique is a bit naive,´ he tells the reporter, ´He can't accept that the judges were right. _I_ on the other hand firmly believe in Genovian justice.´

´With me is Viscount Mabrey,´ the reporter says for the benefit of her viewers. ´Sir, the police are in search for Her Majesty - ´

´Please Miss Eco, don't use that title. She doesn't deserve it!´

People voice their agreement.

´She's a murderer!´ someone unseen cries out.

´She is indeed!´ the Viscount replies, ´I always felt her to be hungry for power, and our King-´

He waits for a moment and people add: ´may he rest in peace!´

´He will! Believe me, he _will_!´ the Viscount assures them.

People applaud him.

´Our good King fell victim to her viciousness. But justice did not let her get away with it!´

His words again meet the bystanders' approval.

´It is believed that her bodyguard, Joe Romero, helped her escape. What do you think of that sir?´ Miss Eco asks.

´I'm convinced he helped her and that makes him a traitor.´

People nod.

´Parliament sentenced death penalty,´ the reporter says, ´The European Union responded that such punishment is against the law. How do you feel about that?´

The nobleman shakes his head in contempt for the European interference. ´Let her spend the rest of her life in prison if that pleases Europe better. First and foremost I want that murderess of my King caught!´

**The Merchant's square in Esquina, near the Genovian Spanish border**

The moon shines on a medieval town square. A lit clock on a church tower shows that it is past eleven. Some villagers pass by.

´I haven't been able to think about anything else,´ one of them says, ´I just can't believe it is for real.´

´She looks so sweet but she's just another deceitful bitch,´ another voice responds.

´How could she do that to her sons? It's horrible to say so but I'm glad that prince Philippe didn't live to find out. What do you think Antoine?´

´I think she's ruthless,´ a fourth voice angrily says, ´I hope they catch her and throw her in jail for live.´

When the villagers' footsteps fade away a balding figure emerges from the shadows. Silent as a cat he moves to a small blue house which he enters unseen.

**Flight KL682 from Montreal to Amsterdam**

Colonel Frerer, wearing civilian clothes, picks up her buzzing phone.

´Yes?´

A male voice on the other side says: ´On your way home?´

´Yes I am,´ the Colonel says. Her eyes reveal that she recognizes the voice.

´GV seven.´

Before the Colonel can reply audibly the connection is broken.

**At sea**

Super yacht _Triple V_ lies at anchor. A hydraulic door in the blue hull opens revealing a Mediterranean man who stares out over the water. When he hears a motorboat approach he switches on underwater lights. It doesn't take long before the boat comes to a stop next to the yacht.

´Mr Froment.´

´Sir. I've got everything with me now.´

´Excellent.´

The two men move a few boxes and a large wooden case from the boat to the yacht.

´Need help bringing it up sir?´

´No thank you Mr Froment.´

´Ay sir. See you in a couple of months?´

´I don't know how long his lordship plans to sail.´

´If I were him, I'd never leave this beauty again. He aboard yet?´

´No he is still in Pyrus. I expect him tomorrow.´

Froment leaves. The hydraulic door closes again. The Mediterranean man places the boxes on a baggage trolley and opens the case's lid. He's surprised to see that there's another lid and an envelope with the word Jean on it. Using a pocket knife he opens the envelope to find a small sealed envelope and a note. The note reads: _To guest suite on owner's deck. Place envelope on bedside table. _Jean raises an eyebrow. He starts to remove the second lid. The first thing he sees is a black ladies' bag. He holds his breath and removes the lid altogether.

Curled up on soft blankets and wearing a muddy skirt and coat is the unconscious Queen of Genovia.


	3. Day 2

**### Day 2 ###**

**Safe house number seven in Esquina, Genovia**

The safe house's kitchen is dim for the only window is covered by a roller-blind. Joe, wearing black jeans and a short sleeved black shirt, lies on his back underneath a kitchen sink. He seems to be fixing a drain or so but it turns out that he is removing something: a gun and a box with bullets.

**At sea, aboard ****_Triple V_**

Jean is spotting birds through a pair of binoculars. When he hears the sound of a rotor he focuses on the approaching aircraft. It lands on deck and before its rotor comes to a stop Jean and a crew member hurry to open the helicopter's door. Lord Andre Sadique hands Jean three suitcases and steps out.

**Schiphol airport, Amsterdam, the Netherlands**

Colonel Frerer waits in line for the passport check. Just when it is her turn the young officer behind the desk is told by his commander to have a break. The commander takes his place and carefully checks the Colonel's passport.

´So you're from Genovia. Colonel.´

The Colonel raises an eyebrow at being addressed by her rank.

´Are you on your way home?´

´I am.´

´I heard your Queen's a murderer,´ the officer says.

´You shouldn't believe slander sir,´ the Colonel coolly replies.

After a moment the officer returns the passport. The Colonel feels that it is thicker than before. After glancing at her watch she makes it for a washroom. She steps into a toilet, sits down on the seat and checks her passport. It contains a small envelope. In it she finds a credit card and a note on mould-made paper that reads: ´From afriend0. Cell in bag. helpher0_._´The Colonel tears up both the noteand the envelope and flushes them before removing a brand new purple cell phone from her bag to store it in her shoulder bag. She then goes to the railway station where the Thalys to Pyrus is to leave at 7:10 a.m.

**Safe house number seven in Esquina, Genovia**

Joe cleans a gun while listening to a small solar cell radio. Members of Parliament and common Genovians alike angrily demand justice for their murdered King.

´I'll keep fighting for you mi amor,´ Joe whispers.

**At sea, the guest suite aboard ****_Triple V_**

Hanging over an antique chair is the Queen's coat. Underneath the chair her shoes are placed and on it stands her handbag. Lord Sadique stands next to a canopied bed. His eyes are fixed on the voluptuous Queen. She is still unconscious but she moves her head from left to right as if she has a nightmare.

**Cafe Molinero in Esquina, Genovia**

Colonel Frerer has a cup of tea. She has a good view of a small blue medieval house.

**Lunchroom Petite Fleur in Pyrus, Genovia**

An old man with white hair leaves a washroom and makes his way toward a table where an elderly woman is seated. He catches bits and pieces of the conversations going on in the crowded lunchroom. There's only one subject of interest for the patrons.

´- judges said she did it! Am I to believe they are corrupt? Hell no!´

´- person can turn into a murderer. Just get the circumstances right and -´

´- black days in Genovian history -´

´-tionships gone bad, that's when women become killers -´

´The Prime Minister probably helped her to es-´

´-ypical weapon for a woman. And she almost got away -´

´- unfaithful to her from the start. If _my_ husband did that -´

´- about power. Some people need more and more and she -´

The old man sits down and says: ´Here I am again. Are you all right Natalie?´

´Everyone thinks she did it Armand,´ Natalie replies in a small voice.

´Not everyone my sweet. Not you and I.´

**The Merchant's square in Esquina, Genovia**

When a group of tourists pass by Colonel Frerer joins them. Apart from her luggage she now carries plastic bags too: one contains groceries and the other's from a tourist shop. The tourists' guide crosses the medieval square and points toward some interesting features of a building next to a small blue house. Using the cover the tourists provide the Colonel knocks on the blue house's door. When the group moves on she is gone.

**Gentlemen's club Noblesse Oblige, King Louis III square in Pyrus, Genovia**

Viscount Mabrey offers a cigar to a man in a police uniform.

´Thank you Viscount.´

´How is the investigation going on chief commissioner?´

´Ongoing.´

´You can't say much, can you? I understand. A little bird told me that you've got a track on Romero's debit- and credit cards.´

The commissioner glances around and, satisfied there is no one near, says: ´We're tracking payment transfers of several members of the royal household.´

´Nothing yet?´

´There will be. He will have to buy food. Arrange shelter. Transport.´

´I'm confident that you'll find her. That murderess can't hide forever. Here, let me lit that Cuban for you.´

**House of Parliament in The Hague, the Netherlands**

A man walking down a corridor is harassed by journalists.

´Prime Minister! Has Queen Beatrix contacted you before she addressed the European Parliament?´ a reporter asks.

´Do you take responsibility for what Her Majesty said?´ another journalists says.

The politician looks tired and annoyed. Members of his staff try to pull him along but the questions of the press infuriate him and he stops to answer.

´The Queen has _not_ consulted me on this subject. And I'm _very_ disappointed by that! She may think she was helping a friend, but she might be defending a murderer and she surely offended Genovia. She should have known that this isn't about friendship but about _politics_. And she should keep away from that! I contacted her and told her that I demand a word with her.´

**Safe house number seven in Esquina, Genovia**

Joe eats a sandwich the Colonel bought in the supermarket. The two of them are in the kitchen and the Colonel unpacks the bag from the supermarket. It contains toiletries, energy bars in various flavours, bottles of water, a pack of bubble gum, more sandwiches, several papers, canned food, apples and tea.

´You expected to find her here, didn't you?´ Joe says.

´I did.´

´I couldn't say more on the phone.´

´I understand that.´

´Her royal friend must have arranged for the credit card,´ Joe says.

´I agree.´

´Have you used it already?´

´No.´

´The Dutch Queen wanting you to find her means that _she_ didn't kidnap her.´

´True. So who did? And why? I think that the person or group who rescued her means her no harm.´

Joe grimly nods. ´For if they did, they would have let her be executed. The commander of the Pyran police was on the news and he said there hadn't been a demand for a ransom.´

´Have you found out why the King was killed?´

´What matters now is that _the fact_ that he was murdered made its way to a paper.´

After a moment the Colonel replies: ´So who sent the letter suggesting foul deeds to the press?´

Joe nods approvingly. ´A few days ago I found out that it went through Von Troken. It was sent to him by someone named Fierre, but the baron didn't know him. Or her. What's important is why it was revealed _now_.´

´Isn't it possible that someone just wanted the murder to be investigated? There need not be a ploy to hurt the Queen.´

´Trust me: this is personal!´ Joe says while opening the second box of sandwiches.

´What enemies can she have?´

´She pulled through an anti-drugs law. Mabrey and Von Troken opposed it.´

´The Viscount and the Baron use every opportunity to oppose Her Majesty so why do you -´

´I can't prove it,´ Joe interrupts, ´but I'm sure that Von Troken allowed criminals to use his estate by the sea to smuggle drugs into Europe. Still, he's too dumb and Mabrey isn't wealthy enough to have staged the trial.´

The Colonel pages through a paper while saying:

´Von Troken has a claim to the throne but despite that he was among the noblemen who asked Prince Pierre to become a regent.´

Joe swallows a bite and replies: ´The baron hopes the Prince will decline and then he'll claim that it was never his own ambition to become King. But that's irrelevant now. Our _first_ priority is to find the Queen. I need to make sure she is save.´

The Colonel turns the page so Joe can read an article about Von Troken. A picture of the baron accompanies the article.

´Have you contacted anyone?´ the officer asks gesturing toward a phone hanging against a kitchen wall, ´The Prime Minister, your second-in-command, Miss Kutaway?´

´No. The less people know where I am the better.´

´Could the Prime Minister have arranged for the Queen's escape?´

Joe shakes his head. ´I thought of that too but he's a jurist. He believes in the power of words. He would never have thought that she would be found guilty.´

´And I suppose he doesn't have the money to have done it,´ the Colonel says, ´Besides, he would have told _you_ about his plan.´

She waits in vain for Joe's reply: he stares at a newspaper photo of their Queen. ´The Archbishop might be involved with her escape,´ the Colonel continues, ´The church is wealthy…´

Joe shakes his head. ´I saw him at the courtyard of the House of Justice. He was desperately trying to persuade people to stop the execution. He must have been as surprised as anyone when - _He's_ got the money!´

The Colonel walks around the table to stand next to Joe who points at a picture of the King, the Queen, Prince Philippe and Lord Sadique.

´He's a friend of the royal family and one of the richest people in the world,´ Joe says.

´The subscript says that Sadique postponed his round-the-world cruise for the Queen's trial but that he now left for his yacht,´ the Colonel remarks.

´It _has_ to be him,´ Joe says.

The Colonel reads on and then says: ´_Triple V_ is harboured in Antiem.´

Joe rises. ´Let's see where that credit card can bring us.´

**At sea, the guest suite aboard ****_Triple V_**

The Queen sits on sofa. She looks sad but her posture is excellent. Lord Sadique hands her a glass of water.

´Here you are my dear.´

´Thank you Andre.´

She takes a sip.

´How do you feel now Clarisse?´ Sadique kindly asks.

The Queen starts blinking. She accepts the handkerchief her friend hands her.

´My people hate me Andre. They threw mud at me. What if even my son and my granddaughter think that the judges were right?´

´_I_ know that you are innocent and anyone who truly knows you will think the same.´

Andre presses his lips against the Queen's forehead.

´They would have killed me. You saved my life,´ she slowly says.

´Say no more about it my dear. We are in international waters now and save Jean no one knows that you are here, not even my crew. You will not be harmed.´

Andre captures her face in his hands and brushes away her tears. The Queen leans against him. Andre soothingly caresses her back as she cries in his arms. He smiles.

**Esquina, Genovia**

It's growing dusk. In a pedestrian precinct behind a row of medieval houses two women waiting for their dogs to stop sniffing one another make conversation.

´I haven't seen the news. Is she caught yet?´

´No. Romero _was_ in Spain but the trail didn't lead anywhere.´

The first woman shakes her head. ´Isn't it horrible? If she really did it, she shouldn't get away with it.´

A tourist passes by. He wears a grey sweat-shirt with the text ´I love Esquina´, a navy blue cap and a backpack with a German flag sticking out of it. His hands hold the straps of his backpack. His right hand has a big tattoo on it.

´Hello,´ the women simultaneously say.

´Guten tag. Bonjour mademoiselles!´ the man merrily replies.

The second woman waits for a moment and tells the other woman: ´_I_ wouldn't go hiking now. It'll be dark soon.´

´There's a B&B down the road. He's probably heading there.´

The women have their backs toward the direction the tourist took and they don't see a car stop at a distance.

**At sea, the guest suite aboard ****_Triple V_**

Andre briefly places his hands on the Queen's shoulders before pulling her chair back so she can leave the dinner table.

´You barely ate Clarisse.´

´I'm sorry. I can't stop thinking about…´

Her voice trails away. She walks to a sofa and sits down. Sadique walks to a wall and presses a button.

´I expect the Prime Minister to ask my son to become a regent. What do you think Andre?´

´It seems very likely.´

Sadique starts closing the curtains.

´I hope Pierre will accept. If he doesn't Von Troken might make a move or Amelia might have to become a Queen at eighteen rather than twenty-one.´

´Motaz will persuade Pierre I'm sure,´ Sadique replies.

´This might take a long time Andre,´ the Queen tentatively says. She wants to continue but when Sadique takes out his phone and reads a message, she holds her tongue.

Sadique's phone reads: _Romero heading for Antiem._

Sadique looks enraged. He sends a message, closes another curtain and with a smile turns toward the Queen.

´What do you mean by _this_ my dear?´

´Genovia thinks I'm guilty. I'm a fugitive. I have nowhere to go.´

Sadique sits down next to her.

´My yacht is your yacht. And I'm sure that it won't take long before Genovia realises the horrible mistake they made.´

The Queen looks doubtful. Sadique gently caresses her hair.

´But if they don't I'm here for you for as long as it takes Clarisse.´

There's a knock on the door. Sadique straightens up. ´Enter,´ he says.

The butler walks in carrying a tray with coffee and tea. Lord Sadique doesn't pay him attention but the Queen greets him. Jean respectfully inclines his head for her and places the tray on the coffee table.

´Rupert's murderer will think he escaped justice,´ the Queen tells Sadique. ´Joseph will find him though.´

´Joe is sought by the police darling,´ Andre says, ´It will not be easy for him to continue his quest.´

´He will not give up,´ the Queen says without a trace of doubt. She bends towards the coffee table to add honey to her cup. ´If only because he knows that finding the murderer will prove my innocence. Dear Joseph.´

With the Queen not watching him Sadique's expression shows that he is displeased by her words. The butler notices it but he makes a good show of being concentrated on pouring his master coffee. When the Queen looks at him Sadique is all smiles.

´I'm sure you're right,´ Sadique soothingly says.

´You haven't contacted Joseph about your escape plan?´

´Joe was helping you in another way. I didn't want to distract him. Tell me my dear, why do you still wear that stained blouse and skirt? Surely you saw the clothes I bought you? Why don't you change and then Jean can take your clothes to wash them.´

´It will be my pleasure Your Majesty,´ the butler says.

With some hesitation the Queen rises. Sadique rises also and doesn't sit down until after she entered the adjoining bedroom. His focus on the slight sway of the Queen's hips doesn't escape the butler, who walks to the dinner table to clear it. Sadique touches the spot on the sofa where the Queen sat. When he hears a door open accompanied by the sound of high heels he rises and says: ´That is swiftly done my dear…´ He stops talking when he sees that the Queen hasn't changed but is holding her handbag. She smiles brightly.

´Amelia made fun of me for not being accustomed to modern equipment. I almost forgot about my cell phone! Joseph's number is in it and the Prime Minister's and Charlotte's as well!´

She sits down and starts searching her bag. After a while her smile fades.

´It's gone.´

´Perhaps you didn't look good enough?´

´I can hardly miss it: it's yellow,´ the Queen says but still she goes through her bag again.

´When is the last time you checked its contents?´ Sadique asks.

´I don't know,´ the Queen says, sounding desperate.

´It will be all right my darling,´ Sadique assures her.

**The royal palace in The Hague, the Netherlands**

Queen Beatrix is in her office. On her desk stand a few pictures: one of her family and one of herself and the Queen of Genovia enjoying a picnic. There's a paper lying on the desk with a heading POSITIE KONINGIN PRECAIR. An aid-de-champ –the same officer who checked Colonel Frerer's passport at the airport- hands her an envelope. The Queen opens it to find a fax saying _18974 EUR Carron Automobiles, Esquina_.

´Finally! Has the phone been used already?´

´No it hasn't Your Majesty. I don't have a trace yet.´

**Outside the harbour master's office in Antiem, Genovia**

Colonel Frerer talks to a bearded man. After a while he gestures in a certain direction. The Colonel greets him and walks to a brand new Toyota. After getting in she glances in the driving mirror to look at the back seat. In the darkness only shapes can be made out. The only recognisable thing is a plastic German flag sticking out in between the driver's seat and the passenger seat.

´The harbour master saw Sadique's helicopter arrive early this morning. Soon afterwards _Triple V_ left. Yesterday evening the yacht was provisioned by one Marcel Froment. His warehouse is nearby.´

´Let's go,´ says Joe.

**Outside Froment's warehouse in Antiem, Genovia**

It is very quiet in the harbour but there's someone at work in the warehouse: behind a lit window a man with auburn hair sits behind a laptop.

´I'll go in and question him,´ the Colonel says. She parks the car outside the brightness of a street light, but in such a way that her companion has a view of the building.

´Be careful. And stay near the window,´ Joe replies.

The Colonel nods and leaves. Joe watches her walk toward the building, knock and enter. A moment later on he sees her shake hands with the clerk who then drags her toward him and holds a gun to her head. Joe doesn't hesitate and gets out of the car. Three men are waiting for him. He fights for what he's worth and hurts two attackers but at last he receives a punch against his right kidney followed by a blow against his stomach. Like a ragdoll he's taken to the warehouse.

**Froment's warehouse in Antiem, Genovia**

Joe is thrown into the office. Colonel Frerer is already lying on the floor. Her wrists are tied and she seems unconscious. Someone ties Joe's wrists and feet and asks: ´What are we gonna do now?´

´We lock them in and close the shutters,´ another man replies. ´No way they can get out then.´

´Shouldn't we call Froment?´

´Like hell we won't: he went to a whore house and he expected us to handle this. You will pick him up tomorrow morning and bring him here. He'll know what to do next.´

´That guy's Romero right?´

´Yeah. I recognized him from TV too.´

´Shouldn't we call the police?´

´With the stuff we have here? Don't be such a fool Paul!´

´Who's the woman?´

´His girlfriend probably. Common, let's grab a beer.´

The door is locked and soon the metal shutters on the outside of the windows move down. A small bang announces that the windows are blocked and instantly Joe and the Colonel prove not to be unconscious at all. The officer starts moving toward Joe. As she does, she notices a shiny pebble stuck underneath his left boot.


	4. Day 3

Author's note: I hope this isn't going to be yet another chapter without reviews…

**### Day 3 ###**

**At sea, the guest suite aboard ****_Triple V_**

The Queen is sleeping silently, covered in moonlight. Lord Sadique squats next to her bed and caresses her bare upper arm. When she doesn't respond he rises and carefully takes off her blanket. She wears a black nightgown with lace at the top. Sadique licks his lips. Down the blanket goes, revealing that the nightgown ends well above the Queen's knees. Sadique drinks in the sight she offers. After indulging himself for a few moments he covers up the Queen and leaves.

**Froment's warehouse in Antiem, Genovia**

The ropes with which Joe and the Colonel were tied up lie on the floor. Sitting on his knees Joe moves from carpet tile to carpet tile and softly knocks on each of them. The Colonel meanwhile is sitting behind the desk and goes through files using a pocket-torch.

´This could be it,´ she softly says. ´Froment brought three boxes of canned food aboard _Triple V_ as well as a wooden cage containing champagne. The food is accounted for in Froment's books, but the champagne isn't, so it looks like he merely transported it.´

´Does the record say how big the cage was?´ Joe too is talking almost inaudibly.

´Hold on.´

Joe continues knocking on the carpet tiles. When he gets to the desk the Colonel rises and walks away to allow him access taking the file with her.

´I've got it: 94 centimetres wide, 160 long, 109 high.´

Joe looks up. ´This must be it!

´It's the only option we have. But yes: it's very likely. I just don't understand why Sadique didn't inform _you_.´

**At sea, the owner's deck aboard ****_Triple V_**

Lord Sadique, dressed in a track-suit and carrying a squash racket, holds a card near a device next to a door making a red light turn green. The door opens. He descends the stairs behind it.

**Froment's warehouse in Antiem, Genovia**

One of Froment's men enters the office holding a bottle of water.

´So Romero, I got you - Fuck! They're gone!´

Daniel hurriedly enters. ´Impossible, they can't have escaped!´

A third man comes rushing in. Behind them the door is locked.

**At sea, the guest suite aboard ****_Triple V_**

The Queen stands in the living room and watches a small Rembrandt. She's wearing a short skirt and though it compliments her beautiful long legs she tries to move it down. There's a knock on the door but she doesn't hear it.

´Good morning Your Majesty.´

Startled the Queen turns around to find the butler in her room. A clock on the wall behind him shows it is seven o'clock. ´Good morning Mr Leclerc.´

´Please ma'am, call me Jean. You called? Is there anything I can get you?´

´I'd like a cup of tea if that's possible.´

´Of course ma'am. Would you like toasted bread with it or perhaps some yoghurt with fruit?´

Conscious of the fact that her long sleeved shirt emphasizes her bosom, the Queen takes a long silk scarf from a chair and hangs it around her neck.

´I'm not very hungry. Tea will do.´

The butler inclines his head and turns to leave. He is stopped by a question:

´Did you know that Lord Sadique had bought me clothes?´

´No ma'am I didn't. He brought them along when he arrived aboard.´

´He told me he had bought everything after he concluded that the trial wouldn't end well.´

´I'm sorry that he proved right Your Majesty.´

The Queen fingers her scarf. ´This Hermes scarf is from the 1997 collection.´

The butler gives it a thought. ´He probably bought it as a gift and he lacked the opportunity to hand it to you. If I remember correctly Your Majesty he was abroad most of that year.´

´That must explain for it,´ the Queen replies with a blush, ´Please don't mention my remark.´

´Of course not Your Majesty.´

**A road near Antiem, Genovia**

Seeing a sign of a motel the Colonel informs Joe, who lies on the backseat and is camouflaged by a blanket: ´At two kilometres there's a motel with computers in every room and free internet.´

´Great. Let's take an hour to freshen up and do some research.´

**At sea, Lord Sadique's suite aboard ****_Triple V_**

The butler is dusting. He uses his feather-brush with care, especially when he's around paintings and statues. To clean a hand held camera he uses a soft cloth. Through the glass wall between the living room and the office he has a look at his Lordship's neat desk. There's a damaged yellow cell phone lying on it.

**Froment's warehouse in Antiem, Genovia**

The three locked in men rise to their feet when they hear a door open. It doesn't take long before the office door is opened also and Froment enters. His employees sheepishly look at him. While Froment looks around Paul arrives.

´Where are they?´ Paul redundantly asks.

´A _woman_ and an _old man_,´ Froment says, ´How did they get away?´

´We don't know.´

Froment curses. He walks to the desk and sees that the telephone wire is gone.

´The woman was slim,´ Paul offers, ´Maybe she got up the ceiling and -´

´Was she anorexic?´ Froment asks through clenched teeth.

´Well,´ Paul starts, ´she was a bit ski-´

´Shut up and find them!´

**Motel Nancy near Antiem, Genovia**

In a shabby room Joe sits behind a table that serves as a desk. He enters data on a keyboard. When the Colonel comes out of the bathroom he says: ´According to yachtspottingdotcom Sadique is on his way south. According to theveryrichdotcom he will attend the wedding of a business associate in Tangier in a few days. Other internet sources confirm this.´

´I'll contact an acquaintance in Pamplona to get us transport.´

**At sea, a corridor on the owner's deck aboard ****_Triple V_**

The door handle of the entrance door to the guest suite comes down. Hearing a sound Jean, dusting a framed photo of a 16th century castle, soon locates it. The handle comes down again. After a third attempt to open the door the handle moves no longer. At hip height next to the door is a small device with a red light.

**Froment's warehouse in Antiem, Genovia**

Froment and Daniel are in the basement, which serves as a laboratory. In a corner of the basement there are a few guitars and a saxophone.

´We didn't know that there was an entry to the basement _in the office_,´ Daniel says, ´And -´

´And keeping our cell phones with us was too much trouble,´ Froment says mockingly, ´Right! You already replied that you caught him?´

Daniel swallows hard. ´I did. My guess is that whoever ordered us to take Romero captive wants to torture him to find out where the Queen is.´

´Makes sense. And he made sure that Romero and his girlfriend were lured here. If only you had let the woman have her say. I would have liked to know what they'd thought to find here. I told you before that patience is a good thing.´

´Romero was still outside. By threatening his girlfriend I got him out of his hiding. And as for what they wanted: I guess they needed a ship.´

´You guess too much. But you're probably right. Now, if _we_ don't find Romero and _he_ gets himself caught, he might tell the cops about our facilities.´

Froment's phone starts beeping. He looks at the display and smirks. ´Looks like Whoever doesn't want to torture Romero.´

Froment shows Daniel his phone. The message on it says: _dispose_.

´Start moving the stuff to the van. I'll call back the guys. We can kill two birds with one stone.´

**The Genovian Spanish border**

The customs-officers wave through most cars that want to enter Spain. A Volkswagen with four young men in it and a Toyota driven by a woman are made to stop.

´Good morning senora,´ an officer greets the Colonel.

´Good morning,´ the Colonel replies with a rare smile.

´Could I see your passport please?´

´Of course.´

The Colonel takes the document from her handbag on the passenger seat. The customs-officer glances at the backseat of the car.

´Going on a tracking holiday?´ he says as he accepts the passport.

´Yes, near Aoiz. Do you know it there?´

´I'm afraid not.´

The man hands the Colonel her passport. Looking at her luggage he is just about to make a remark when his colleague asks for assistance: the men in the Volkswagen are giving trouble.

´You may travel on now.´

´Thank you. Have a nice day officer!´

In her driving mirror the Colonel can see the customs-officer walk over to the Volkswagen.

When the car starts speeding up a voice from the back seat says: ´I didn't know you could sound blonde.´

The Colonel sniggers.

**At sea, the guest suite aboard ****_Triple V_**

The butler is serving tea and small chocolate muffins.

´_Do_ try one Clarisse, they are delicious,' Lord Sadique tells the Queen who sits next to him.

´They do _smell_ good,' she says and instantly the butler puts one on a plate for her.

´Is there any news Andre? Have you managed to contact the Prime Minister?'

´I tried but there's a connection problem.' Andre covers the Queen's hand with his. ´And as far as the mood in Genovia is concerned there's nothing _good_ to report I'm afraid dear. But as soon as that changes, I'll let you know.'

´I hope Joseph reasons that I was kidnapped by someone who means me well.'

Sadique raises the Queen's hand to his lips. ´I do my dear, I do.'

**Grand café Les chats in Pyrus, Genovia**

It's almost noon. The grand café's owner turns on a TV.

´Just for the news ladies and gentlemen!´ she tells the patrons.

Those who can view the TV look up to watch and others find themselves a spot near the screen. Conversations die away or are being hushed.

_´Prince Pierre talked to the Prime Minister and several MPs today,´ the newscaster says. ´Sources around Mr Motaz reveal that the prince seems willing to accept the regency for his niece, princess Amelia. The King's convicted murderess is not yet caught. Her Head of Security hasn't been found either. The police are still looking for them. Prime Minister Motaz assured his European colleagues that the Queen will not be executed after she's been arrested.´_

The patrons mumble.

_´The _Dutch_ Prime Minister -ignoring his party members' council- refused to take responsibility for Queen Beatrix's defence of Queen Clarisse and he asked for a special meeting of Parliament to discuss the Queen's position. We're going to our reporter in The Hague. Hello Carlos, can you hear me?´_

_´Loud and clear Patrick.´_

_´Does the Prime Minister want Queen Beatrix to resign?´_

_´Yesterday evening he had a meeting with her and according to sources he made it clear that he was very displeased by what she did. Right now there's a heated debate going on in Parliament. My guess is that the Prime Minister wants Parliament to decide on the Queen's faith. After all: firing a Queen is not something anyone would want to burn his fingers on. But look behind me Patrick, what do you see?´_

_´I see a crowd dressed in orange.´_

_´Exactly. The royal House of the Netherlands is the House of Orange.´_

_Carlos addresses a Dutchman wearing an orange hat. ´Excuse me, could you explain what you're doing here?´_

_´I'm here to support the Queen.´_

_´But she defended Queen Clarisse who was sentenced guilty for killing the King!´_

_´You're from Genovia?´_

_´Yes I am.´_

_´If your Queen's guilty, I'll feel sorry for my Queen. But listen: my Queen's a smart lady. She won't be fooled by a murderer. So, your Queen must be innocent. Simple as that.´_

In the grand café a man says: ´Common! If _their_ Queen had killed her husband they would wanna see blood too. If You Know Who is innocent I'm a Dutchman!´ The man is hushed by other patrons.

_´ - great that the Queen defends her friend,´ a woman wearing an orange boa tells Carlos, ´She isn't some politician who drops people the moment it gets tough and we won't let the Prime Minister hurt her.´_

_The bystanders applaud. A man dressed in a dark suit tells the journalist: ´Your Queen was arrested based on no more than a vague typed letter. No prosecutor should have allowed for that to happen in the first place. She was found guilty without the slightest evidence. And as for the possible motive: are you going to arrest every widow whose husband was cheating on her?´_

_The Dutchmen surrounding the speaker laugh. The man is not done talking: ´I fully agree with Queen Beatrix. Justice took off her blindfold and messed with her balance.´_

_The bystanders applaud. From afar a song is heard and the people near Carlos join in: ´Oranje boven Oranje boven! Leve de koningin!´_

The people in grand café Les chats silently look at each other.

**An aircraft shed near Pamplona, Spain**

A man in his fifties wearing an overall walks toward the Colonel who just got out of her car.

´Frances! So good to see you again!' he says while shaking her hand.

´Hello Enrique, how are you?'

´Fine fine. Busy busy. I was glad when you called to say you need flight hours.'

He gestures toward an old timer. ´Remember when I said I could use a pilot to Jerez?'

The Colonel nods.

´Well, actually would you- Who's he?'

Enrique looks at a man in the Toyota's passenger seat who wears a baseball cap and sucks his thumb.

The Colonel shrugs. ´That's Manuel. He never went on an airplane and I promised to take him.'

´He's not quite all right is he?'

´No. But he's sweet tempered. Now what did you want to say?'

´Well, it will take you a bit longer, but I'd owe you: that beauty over there needs to go to Tangier. I've got another plane over there that needs to come home. Not right away mind you.'

The Colonel hesitates for a moment before she replies. ´I'd like a longer flight. It might upset Manuel though… Just a moment, I'll ask him.'

Enrique watches as the Colonel walks back to the car and opens the passenger door. She talks and her friend starts clapping his hands. The Colonel straightens up and gives Enrique the thumbs up.

´Great!' he calls out. ´I'll handle the papers straight away.'

**La rue Veau in Pyrus, Genovia**

There are many shops in this street and as a result it is crowded. Natalie and Armand, the two elderly people we saw in Lunchroom Petite Fleur, walk away from each other. They both carry black cardboard signs with texts in orange letters: QUEEN INNOCENT - TRIAL FAKE

Some people who see them make clear that they are nuts. Others thoughtfully walk on.

**An aircraft above Spain**

´Do you trust Enrique?' Joe asks the Colonel.

´Yes I do.'

´Yet you checked the cargo when he was readying the papers.'

´Better safe than sorry. Do you trust Sadique?'

´He had clearance code one.'

´That's a nice Freudian slip.'

´What do you mean?'

´Past tense.'

The Colonel gets a message from a control tower to identify herself and she does. After a while Joe says: ´He uses people who act as harbour suppliers but who run a drug business.'

´Many yacht owners in Antiem will unknowingly do so.'

´This morning you wondered why Sadique didn't inform me about his plan to save Her Majesty.´

´Perhaps he doesn't trust you?´

´He used me as a pawn. I'm convinced that he was the one who had me knocked unconscious and brought to Spain…'

When Joe pauses the Colonel says: ´Agreed.'

´The point is that there was no need for that. If he had the means to send the police to Spain, he could have done that without me as bait.'

´Still, the police didn't know about the tracking device or they would have arrested you already. Did you leave the _pebble_ in the basement?'

Joe nods.

´It was meant for him. It was meant to check my whereabouts and it wasn't made use of until I got to Antiem. The men who locked us up were the same men who, whether they knew it or not, brought Her Majesty aboard _Triple V_. The same men who run a drug business.'

´Which brings us back to the Queen's war on drugs,' the Colonel says while looking worriedly to an enormous grey cloud ahead.

´Indeed. Let's say that Sadique is a drug lord. The law would have reduced his business.'

´Hardly,' the Colonel comments. ´The man's legitimate enterprises alone generate a fortune. And besides, even after the trial the drug law still stands.'

The airplane gets in bad weather.

**At sea, Lord Sadique's suite aboard ****_Triple V_**

Sadique is in his dressing room.

´Which one sir?' his butler asks showing his Lordship several ties.

´The ruby one.´

Using a remote control Sadique switches on a TV. There's a street interview going on: Natalie and Armand, still holding their cardboard signs, are questioned by Miss Eco. They are surrounded by about eighty supporters, many of whom wear something orange. The next part of the item takes place in a studio where a professor of laws explains to a critical interviewer that the trial wasn't up to Genovian standards.

´That is a hopeful development, isn't it sir?' the butler comments.

Sadique switches off the TV.

**At sea, the guest suite aboard ****_Triple V_**

The butler clears the dining table. The Queen and Lord Sadique seat themselves on a sofa.

´I'm glad you ate a little bit. I was worried you know,' Sadique says with an endearing smile.

´Don't worry for me Andre.'

´You're my friend and I'm very fond of you. As you know very well…'

Sadique pauses until the Queen gives him a smile. She readjusts the pillow behind her back. Sadique eagerly assists her.

´I wish I could watch TV or listen to the radio…' the Queen says questioningly.

´My sweet Clarisse, it would only pain you to hear how Genovia thinks of you. They curse you. They want to hurt you.'

The Queen bites her lower lip and doesn't notice that the butler, looking flabbergasted, briefly glances at his master. Sadique angrily stares the man down and puts his arm around the Queen's shoulders.

´I will protect you my dearest.'


End file.
